Fight against school dropout problem and illiteracy among Canadians ages 12 to 30 is central to RONA Foundation's mission

TORONTO, ONTARIO--(Marketwire - Sept. 13, 2007) - The RONA Foundation is announcing that it raised $500,000 at its Annual Golf Tournament on August 27. The tournament brought together some 450 participants, the majority from the network of RONA suppliers. On this occasion, the RONA Foundation also released its 2006 Activities Report, which presents the initiatives carried out during the year to help young Canadians between the ages of 12 and 30 who are facing problems related to illiteracy and quitting school.

"The RONA Foundation has chosen to target young people having difficulties and who belong to a group that's often overlooked: those 12 to 30 years old. Many young people who come out of this group are sometimes poorly equipped to negotiate the change into adult life and its associated responsibilities, and face problems that prevent them from achieving balance and fulfillment," said RONA President and CEO Robert Dutton, who is also Chairman of the RONA Foundation. "The RONA Foundation's mission is to help these troubled young people achieve their full potential and become self-reliant through support for education and training."

The RONA Foundation focuses on fundraising, and the money raised is distributed across Canada to registered charitable organizations that share the Foundation's mission. In 2006, nearly $400,000 in donations went to 52 organizations supported by the RONA Foundation. Among them were the Children's Aid Foundation (Toronto), the Children's Aid Society of Simcoe Country (Barrie), the Cornwall Youth Centre, the Dovercourt Boys and Girls' Club (Toronto), the Learning Disabilities Association of Canada as well as the Learning Disabilities Association of Ontario, the Literacy Council York-Simcoe (Newmarket) and SEVEC (Ottawa).

Helping young people achieve their potential

Created in 1998, the RONA Foundation gives priority to requests for financial assistance from initiatives that help young people achieve their potential and take their rightful place in the workforce. Projects supported by the Foundation include programs to lower school dropout rates, training programs, scholarships that help young people from underprivileged families complete their studies and learn a trade, on-the-job training programs and employment programs for underprivileged youth. Over the past nine years, the RONA Foundation has given out nearly $1,500,000 to different charitable organizations dedicated to serving youth across Canada. The RONA Foundation today continues to grow, thanks to the generosity of its numerous donors.

To read the 2006 Activities Report or learn more about the RONA Foundation, please visit foundation.rona.ca.

ABOUT RONA

RONA is the largest Canadian distributor and retailer of hardware, home renovation and gardening products. RONA operates a network of 671 franchise, affiliate and corporate stores of various sizes and formats. With more than 26,000 employees working under its family of banners across Canada and more than 14 million square feet of retail space, the RONA store network generates close to $6 billion in annual retail sales. For more information, please visit us online at rona.ca.